The Masked Mage, originally known as Belgar the Oracle of Shadows, is a major villain and one of the three potential final bosses in Trials of Mana. He was once a benevolent cleric and healer, who joined the fight against Anise in Heroes of Mana, but he was corrupted by Dark Magic and has become the demonic Dark Lich. He aims to release the Benevodons and absorb their power to become a god and overthrow the Mana Goddess.
He is the counterpart to Thanatos, another masked wizard plotting to rule the world and sharing his true demonic form of the Dark Lich.
Background[]
Belgar was once the Oracle of Shadows, one of the two arch-priests overseeing the Holy City of Wendel along with the Priest of Light. He was a benevolent protector who kept Wendel neutral in conflicts, a top-tier healer and the father of Heath.
In the game Heroes of Mana, set nineteen years before the start of the story, he fought in the war against the ancient Kingdom of Pedda, who had started invading the neighbouring nations. In truth, Inath, the boy king of Pedda, was corrupted by the former Demon Queen Anise, using his forces to return to power. Belgar was a playable ally to the heroes and helped them destroy Anise, but she took Pedda down with her.
One day, a terminally ill little girl could not be saved by normal magic, prompting Belgar to study the forbidden dark arts to save her. She died too soon but he grew obsessed and searched for a way to resurrect her.
Dark forces eventually twisted his body and mind and horribly scarred his face, forcing him to wear a mask. By this time, his increasingly vile experiments made the clergy to reject him, leaving the Priest of Light no choice but to banish him, leaving behind his baby son.
Now irredeemably evil, the newly minted Masked Mage swore to never take off his mask until Wendel was destroyed. He used Dark Magic of Life and Death to make himself undying, becoming the fearsome Dark Lich.
He seized the Mirage Palace in the ruins of Pedda and transported it to the Jungle of Illusions, eventually becoming one of the Three Great Evils of Fa'Diel, along with the Dragon Lord and his Dark Majesty.
Nature[]
Belgar was once an immensely powerful albeit perfectly human cleric, but immersing himself too much in Dark Magic twisted and corrupted him, leaving him with heavy stigma. The eldritch magic he subjected himself to to gain immortality turned his soul into an incredibly powerful demonic spirit called the Dark Lich.
The Dark Lich is now a wraith-like, undead demon warlock, strongly tied to Dark Magic and Necromancy, and what used to be his body is now an undead husk that the demon uses as a vessel. He is one of the Great Evils of Fa'Diel, on par with the current Archdemon whose rule he openly challenges.
Powers And Abilities[]
The Masked Mage has incredible powers and control of Evil, Dark Magic and monsters of the Demon World of Mavolia, being able to curse entire countries, to drain life-force, to empower his servants, to brainwash and corrupt people, and to see and talk somewhere else. He drains life-force and the power of Mana to spawn monsters, and controls illusions and mirages, creating replicas of places the heroes visited in his palace.
At the end of the game, he gains the power of the Benevodons and reach god-tier might, repeatedly boasting about surpassing the Mana Goddess herself and being omnipotent. Though even in this state, he remains weaker than Anise, who is stated to be on par with Mana, so he could only surpass her weakened state. He becomes unfathomably powerful, being able, to master the eight elements to the fullest extent, to spam the mightiest spells and attacks in existence without trouble, and to be immune to certain attacks.
Personality[]
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Artwork of the Masked Mage in the remake.
Belgar used to be stern and reserved, but wise, caring and protective of his city, determined to cure anyone who would need his service as a healer. In Heroes of Mana he is nothing but helpful and fatherly towards the heroes. Alas, he was too stubborn and unable to admit failure, and such determination proved his undoing.
He has become cold, imposing and callous but falsely polite, yet exceedingly arrogant and boastful. Worse, he is cruel, wrathful, taunting and power-hungry. He remains hidden and acts through proxies, skilfully manipulating enemies and allies alike and only acting in person for important tasks, never meeting the heroes until they confront him.
He recognizes their merits, but never sees them as threats and despises their defiance. He is so far gone that he cannot fathom why he was exiled, and burns with hatred and yearning for revenge. He regards death as the true state of perfection that ends suffering, wanting to terminate life and make everyone his undead slave.
Role in the Game[]
| “ | Do you even know how long I have awaited this day? My loathing for humanity has been hidden beneath this mask. I've been concealing my true essence inside this mortal shell. | „ |
| ~ The Masked Mage |
The Masked Mage is the final boss of the Beastman Prince Kevin's or the half-elf cleric's Charlotte storyline. If not, he will be slain by the final boss. He plans to release the Benevodons from the Mana Stones. To do so, he sends Goremand manipulate the Beast Kingdom of Ferolia, to wage war against Wendel.
Later, Goremand abducts Heath, a young cleric of Wendel, and brings him to his liege. The evil wizard likely recognizes his son, exposing him to dark energies to turn him into the enslaved Tainted Soul and make him his bodyguard.
The heroes reach the Mana Sanctuary, the location of the Mana Tree, and gain the fabled Sword of Mana from the Mana Goddess. Then, the Masked Mage kills his two rivals’ faction, and sends his agents abduct the characters' Faery guide in exchange for the Sword, which they use to unleash the Benevodons.
The Masked Mage and the Tainted Soul in the original.
After slaying the Benevodons, the heroes kill Goremand in the Jungle of Illusions and storm the Mirage Palace, filled to the brim with the evil wizard's illusions.
A very pleased Masked Mage greets the heroes and tells them that the Benevodons' power lies in the Sword, and that he waited for them to absorb it before their very eyes, to become mightier than the Goddess herself and replace her as the god of Fa'Diel. Hopefully, the Goddess manages to hamper this power boost. Irked, the Masked Mage teleports to the Mana Sanctuary to settle his score with the exhausted deity. The heroes manage to defeat the Tainted Soul, who returns to normal and tells them the Mage's story before dying.
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The Masked Mage and the Tainted Soul in the remake.
The heroes track down their enemy to the Sanctuary, but too late; the Mana Tree is destroyed, the Goddess is dead, and a Dark God is about to rise. The gloating Masked Mage kills the Faerie and reveals his true form the Dark Lich, in a spiritual realm. He crushes the heroes, but the Faerie’s spirit heals them and reveals that Mana subsists through them, giving them a chance.
They destroy the Dark Lich and the Faerie's spirit fuses with the remnants of the Tree to become the Mana Goddess reborn. Yet the Mana power will need thousand years to rise again, leaving them to build a new era.
Boss Battle[]
| “ | Foolish mortals! I will destroy any hope you have lingering in your bodies! Face the wrath of your new god! | „ |
| ~ (a seriously irked) Dark Lich. |
The Dark Lich is the easiest of the three available final bosses, yet he should by no means be taken lightly. He is an extremely powerful foe at level 50 with 49846 life-points. His attacks are deadly but he takes time to unleash them, leaving himself open quite often. He can boost himself with Strengthen, Protection, Accelerate and Leaf Sabre, which enables him to drain the heroes’ magic-points with his claw swipes.
Battle against the Dark Lich (original).
He casts the mightiest attacks of the Shadow, Light, Water, Earth and Wood elements, which can poison the heroes or turn them into statues, snowmen or harmless Moogles and must be cured.
His deadliest attacks are Annihilate (an instant kill on one lower-level target), Ancient Curse (a devastating rain of meteors on every hero) and his most powerful spell Meteor Volley: an extreme variation of Ancient Curse.
In a black background, he uses Shadow and is weak to Light. In a watery background he uses Water/Ice and is weak to Fire. In a desert he uses Light and Earth and lack a real weakness. Attacking him with his current element only heals him. The heroes must increase their stats and decrease his own as much as possible, especially magic. If Charlotte is in the party as a High Cleric at least at level 50, she must spam her Undead Away priest spell that deals 999 damage on undeads, even the likes of him. If the heroes attack endlessly and heal often, he shall perish soon.
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The Dark Lich in the remake.
In the remake, the Dark Lich is at level 65. His attacks can be dodged and even telegraphed with red zones signalling their area of effect, but the heroes must react quickly. His element now depends on the light glowing between his ribs: purple means Shadow and weakness to Light, yellow means Earth and weakness to Wind, Blue means Water and weakness to Fire.
He teleports, strikes and stomps the ground with his claws, summons level 60 Dark Wizards, and spams advanced spells from many sides in quick succession, along with Rock Smash: six boulders in a row, Malice: a homing dark red fireball, and Sacred Blast: a giant beam of bluish light. When wounded enough, he crackles with red electricity, casts spells over larger areas and unleashes his mightiest attacks, including Meteor Volley. Some of these attacks can be prevented by destroying all their power sources before he can use them, knocking him out and making him vulnerable for a while.
Circle of Mana[]
The Masked Mage is playable in this card-based role-playing game, featured as both his heroic self from Heroes of Mana, and his demonic, masked self. Each character is played as cards series to save the Mana Tree from monsters, and can evolve and gain power, equipment and Class Changes.
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 Villains
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Final Fantasy Adventure / Sword of Mana Secret of Mana Trials of Mana Legend of Mana Dawn of Mana Heroes of Mana Echoes of Mana Visions of Mana | ||